For most Mainers, it’s the least wonderful time of the year.

It’s definitely the ugliest. As dirty snow banks melt, exposing the vape cartridges, Halloween decorations, dog excrement and leathery squirrel remains that lie beneath (at least that’s the scene outside my door), you almost welcome a late-season dusting just for the visual reprieve.

As exciting as the chirping birds and later sunsets can seem, don’t let them fool you into thinking true spring is in sight. Aside from a few sunny days, you won’t be needing your T-shirts or patio furniture for a while.

Hardy souls might delve into newly available activities, but the novelty of bundling up for a baseball game or grabbing hold of an ice cream cone while wearing gloves can wear off fast. A recently converted appreciator of winter, I wondered if it was possible to truly embrace what’s sometimes known as mud season — without getting dirty. Turning to other Mainers for their tips, I learned that this transitional period does have some perks of its own.

The first step, though, is to acknowledge how spoiled we are in Maine. Our winters are the stuff of Hallmark Christmas movies, and our summers are so glorious people will spend hours in traffic and their life savings on lodging just for a taste. As for fall, well, do a Google image search for Acadia National Park.

Even stick season, the pre-winter equivalent to now, has a spooky calm that’s kind of nice.

“It’s the one time of year Maine might not be the perfect place to be,” said Philip Mathieu, 31, of Portland.

That’s why some Mainers just pretend like it’s still winter.

Sugarloaf makes that possible by keeping its snow-covered slopes open until at least late April, if not early May.

“The weather around Portland is normally pretty nice by the time the lifts close for the season,” said Alex LeGore, 32.

Nicole Regan, 36, of South Portland, keeps busy with jigsaw puzzles and cross-stitch — “the same as I do in the winter but now with much more glorious light and the sounds and sights of the birds,” she said.

Birding is one activity that actually can be more exciting this time of year, as new species are always showing up, starting with the piping plovers that appeared at Ogunquit Beach in early March.

And waterfalls are often at their most impressive during the spring thaw, said Camden Jalbert, 27, of Lewiston.

“With the snow melting, Rumford Falls and the Great Falls in Lewiston/Auburn are great to visit to listen to the roar of that water,” he said. He also recommended Snow Falls right off Route 26 in West Paris and Coos Canyon in Byron.

Beachcombing, too, benefits from the weather patterns, one source noted, with late-winter storms and larger swells, as well as extreme tides, around the equinox, resulting in more shells and sea glass on the shore. At the same time, of course, there’s less competition.

The lack of people also makes for a good opportunity to check out new-to-you towns or visit tourist destinations without fighting traffic, some said.

Kennebunkport, for one, has something happening the entire rest of the year, from its bustling summer to Christmas Prelude to February’s Paint the Town Red. Moosehead Lake and Rangeley, too, only have a short window when they’re not in high demand — for hiking and leaf-peeping, ice fishing and snowmobiling and, starting in June, everything else.

You might not find a ton going on when you get there, but it will be a lot cheaper if you decide to spend the night.